Twitter Reacts to the Anti-Domestic Violence PSA at the Grammys

In the middle of last night’s Grammy Awards, President Obama appeared on screen to promote the White House’s It’s On Us campaign against sexual assault. “Artists have a unique power to change minds and attitudes and get us thinking and talking about what matters,” the president said. “And all of us, in our own lives, have the power to set an example.” Obama’s appearance was followed by activist and performance artist Brooke Axtell, a domestic-abuse survivor who shared her story just before Katy Perry took to the stage to sing “By the Grace of God.”

The message didn’t quite land as intended on Twitter, where commenters quickly pointed out a disconnect between Obama’s speech and the lineup of Grammys nominees. There was Eminem, for example, who won two awards at the ceremony, Best Rap Album for The Marshall Mathers LP 2 and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, for his song with Rihanna, “The Monster.” In case you are unfamiliar with Eminem’s latest, he released a freestyle video this fall, in which he raps, “Bitch, I’ll punch Lana Del Rey right in the face twice, like Ray Rice in broad daylight in the plain sight of the elevator surveillance.” The Grammys also nominated Chris Brown and R. Kelly, two men with track records of abuse against women. It was reminiscent of a similar dissonance at the Super Bowl, where the NFL put out an official No More anti-domestic abuse ad during commercials only to have its players engage in a violent brawl during the last few seconds of the game. Here, a look at some of the Twitter responses that popped up on our feeds.